1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to candles, and more specifically to decorative candles having an auxiliary decorative internal source of illumination.
2. Description of the Related Art
A candle usually emits light by the burning of its wick, however its use as a primary lighting instrument has been reduced with the popularization of electric light. Therefore, the candle is currently used more frequently as decoration.
As a result of this trend, there have emerged a number of decorative and entertainment candle-related products, one example of which can be found in Chinese Patent No. 02233525.0. This patent teaches a candle-based product having a flashing function having a candle and a base tray. The candle is rooted on the base tray, and the tray includes an integrated circuit, power supply, and light emitting diode (LED). The integrated circuit and LED are fixed on the base tray. An aluminum wire/foil core is used as lighting circuit switch; while the switch is closed, the candle will flash. A major drawback is that the aluminum core here is made from two small aluminum foil bars with a layer of insulating material between them set parallel with the wick. The insulating material is vaporized by the flame of the wick, and the aluminum foil bars will be connected and form a circuit. However, burnt ash will remain from the combustion of the insulating material and the melting of the aluminum, and this negatively affects the candle's ability to provide decoration and view. More importantly, after the candle is shut off, the two pieces of aluminum must be pulled apart manually as they remain fused together, and thus the circuit remains closed. Finally, as with ordinary candles, some kind of smoke can be formed during operation, especially if the wick burns all the way down to the LEDs.
An improvement to this design is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/758,179, published Jul. 18, 2002 with Publication No. 2002/0093834 (now abandoned). This application discloses the use of an optical fiber to conduct light from a flame on the wick to a photosensor switch on the LED base. When a flame is present, the LED light show is activated, and when the flame is extinguished, the LEDs go out as well. This design and the one mentioned above suffer from a major deficiency. Since the wax of the candle is designed to be light transparent, light from the flame easily enters and permeates the wax, thereby washing out the light emanating from the LEDs in the base of the candle. The light show effect is thereby diminished by the very trigger mechanism that activates it (the flame), and the result is not very impressive.
One major improvement to this area can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/926,525 (the parent application listed above) by some of the same inventors and owned by the same assignee, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein. It describes a candle with an LED light show in the base having a first relatively opaque zone in the upper portion of the candle near the flame and a second relative translucent zone in the lower portion of the candle near the base. When the flame is lighted, the upper portion of the candle does not transmit the glow of the flame down into the candle body, so that the LED light show in the base of the candle can shine prominently through the more light-transmissible portion. However, activation of the LED light show is dependent on the presence of a flame atop the candle; no flame, no LED light show.